The Magnificent Amerbersons is the second installment in the Growth trilogy, after The Turmoil and before The Midlander. Like most of Tarkington's work, the The Magnificent Ambersons centers around the life of a wealthy Midwestern family. Set somewhere between the Civil War and the beginning of the 20th century, the family declines both socially and economically. The Magnificent Ambersons contains a set of complex characters, courting, and lifestyles. The Ameberson family lives the life of the wealthy and snobbish until one day, the family fortune is lost in a bad investment and the family falls apart. The family then learns the importance of family and the ones who love, instead of money and social status.
Character List
Eugene Morgan - A rich, elegant, and dashing inventor and pioneer in the automobile industry.
George Amberson Minafer - The spoiled son of Wilbur Minafer and Isabel Amberson.
Wilbur Minafer - A steady, quiet, and young businessman who courted Isabel Amberson.
Isabel Amberson - Elegant and Beautiful daughter of Major Amberson.
Jack Amberson- A United States Congressmen who is the son of Major Amberson.
Fanny Minafer - Wilbur Minafer's sister who uses Wilbur's wealth for her own economic gain.
Lucy Morgan - The pretty daughter of Eugene Morgan, who is in love with George.
Major Amberson - The patriarch of the Amberson family who is well liked within the community. He later loses his fortune on bad investments made by his irresponsible son.
Awards
1924 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
Made into a movie in 1942, directed by Orson Wells winning the New York Film Critics Circle Awards for the NYFCC Award, and Best Actress; the National Board of Review award for Best Acting; and was nominated by the Academy Awards for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Best Black-and-White Art Direction-Interior Decoration, Best Black-and-White Cinematography, and Best Picture.
Sight And Sound's 1972 and 1982 list for top ten films ever made list
Selected in 1991 for the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant".
The Magnificent Ambersons (1918)
Summary
The Magnificent Amerbersons is the second installment in the Growth trilogy, after The Turmoil and before The Midlander. Like most of Tarkington's work, the The Magnificent Ambersons centers around the life of a wealthy Midwestern family. Set somewhere between the Civil War and the beginning of the 20th century, the family declines both socially and economically. The Magnificent Ambersons contains a set of complex characters, courting, and lifestyles. The Ameberson family lives the life of the wealthy and snobbish until one day, the family fortune is lost in a bad investment and the family falls apart. The family then learns the importance of family and the ones who love, instead of money and social status.
Character List
Awards
Links
Booth Tarkington
References
"Ambersons Character Profiles." 7 Mar. 2008 <http://ambersons.com/profiles.htm>.</span>
"Ambersons Character Profiles." 7 Mar. 2008 <http://ambersons.com/profiles.htm>.